Ablaze
by Juniper11
Summary: Sakura finds herself in a world not her own and struggles to survive while being different. Will the Justice League embrace her? Or will she make her way on her own? Only time will tell. "Then set me on fire."
1. The Girl Who Fell From the Sky

**Notes: No, this story has nothing to do with the Blue Series. It is a continuous story and will have SPOILERS. If you don't want things spoiled for you then you know what to do. I hope you enjoy it though. I've been a'scared of doing a crossover multichaptered fic especially since I will probably be writing more action than I ever have so bear with me. Also, the final pairing is undecided.  
**

**DISCLAIMER: This story is based upon and will follow the new 52 Justice League comics & the Naruto manga. No copyright infringement intended. **

* * *

**The Girl Who Fell From Sky**

**Book One: Beginnings**

Clouds were slightly damp wisps of air that rushed by her body. She was falling. The pressure on her body pushing her downward is what woke her up. Green eyes flickered open. The lashing of the wind made it difficult to keep her eyes open but somehow she managed. Upon regaining consciousness, it took her 3.5 seconds to assess her current situation. She wasn't where she had been previously. In fact, she was in the sky when she hadn't been when she was last conscious. Most importantly, she was falling with impending doom on the horizon if she didn't do something.

It took her another five seconds to realize there was nothing she could do to save herself. She knew of nothing in the ninja arts that could stop a person from falling when there was nothing close by her able to break her fall.

It took her another minute to call for the one person who inadvertently helped her out of every tight spot she'd been in her entire life. A part of her thought it was shameless to still depend on him like she had when she was a child, but the other more rational part of herself that wanted to live did what she had to do.

"_Naruto!_"

Her voice was carried away by the wind and she hoped against hope for some miracle to save her. Sakura squeezed her eyes shut and was thereafter surprised when her body jarred. She initially suspected that was her body breaking on the ground, but since she felt no pain—only minor discomfort, she ruled that out. The only logical thing to do was to open her eyes and since she no longer felt the disorienting sensation of falling she thought she'd open her eyes only to find herself looking at a rather beautiful profile. She was in a pair of arms; strong arms that were holding her securely.

Sakura chanced a glance around her, noting that she was still among the clouds yet she was no longer falling. There was only one conclusion that she could draw as to why that was, but she wasn't crazy yet so she pushed it to the back of her mind.

"Who are you?"

He looked at her for the first time with curiosity etched in his features. He smiled at her then and Sakura felt her heart flutter a little, but he didn't answer immediately. This caused Sakura to frown, but as she suddenly realized they were descending to the ground, she allowed herself to accept the truth. They had been flying.

_Flying._

In her lifetime Sakura had seen a fair number of justu, but she could never once say that she had seen someone fly. Had she been saved by the gods? Was he a god? When they touched the ground and he lowered her to her feet, she asked him that very question.

"Were you sent by the gods to save me?"

His brow arched incredulously at her question yet Sakura waited patiently for an answer. After all, she deserved one. She would have died if he hadn't intervened and that meant something to her. Though, it would likely mean something to anyone. After all, most people valued their lives.

"I'm not from the gods. I'm just Superman. I save people."

It was obvious that he thought his words made perfect sense, but to Sakura they made him sound like a slight lunatic. No one who happened to be able to fly was 'just super'.

He inclined his head to the side as if he heard something. His brows furrowed and he turned back to her.

"I must go. People need my help."

He planned on leaving her just like that. It wasn't something that sat well with her. In fact, if she was honest something akin to panic settled in her chest. Surely, him catching her was some sort of sign that that they should stay together, to figure out what was going on.

"Wait! You can't just leave me here. Where am I? What happened to me? Where's Naruto and Sasuke? What's going on with the war?"

Alarm and indecision briefly flickered through his eyes and Sakura somehow knew he was trying to prioritize what was more important. The people who needed his help now or her. If the people he planned on going to help were in a dire situation as she had been then she knew there was a great probability that he would leave her behind. So to forestall such a notion she set her own plan in motion.

"Take me with you. I can help you."

He looked skeptical. After all, he had just saved her from falling from the sky. It probably appeared to him that she could do very little. However, Sakura knew her worth now. If there were lives to save then it wasn't farfetched that he'd need her around.

"I'll be fine on my own."

She expected that sort of answer, but Sakura was stubborn so she wasn't going to back down easily.

"I don't doubt that. However, I can't just let you go. You saved my life when you have no obligation to me. Because of that you seem trustworthy. I might not find another person like you. There's no telling what harm could befall me for trusting the wrong person. So, please, take me with you. Just this once."

He hesitated briefly before taking her into his arms once more and pulling her close to his chest. Sakura shivered at the contact.

"Hold on, we'll have to move quickly." Sakura did as she told and was glad she had the common sense to use chakra to hold on to him tightly because the time it took for Naruto to finish a bowl of ramen was eclipsed by his speed.


	2. The Girl Who Could Walk on Water

**The Girl Who Could Walk on Water**

Her face was grim as they flew through the skies. She didn't question the novelty of it—not immediately anyway, but she couldn't help but think it was quite the unusual ability. A Kekkai Genkai perhaps?

When they came closer to reaching their destination the clear skies grew darker, heavier, drearier, and ominous. As the first raindrop hit her face she inwardly groaned. Seconds later the single droplet became multiple ones and water ran down her face and into her eyes, obscuring her vision, which was unfortunate as she was just getting used to keeping her eyes open and moving at such rapid speeds. Her hair became plastered to her face in a way that was far from fetching then a chill settled into her bones, causing Sakura to move closer to the man that held her in his arms.

He was warm.

As they "landed" Sakura realized that she was no longer in the Five Shinobi Nations. This man and his talents were not something that could be hidden. He was in no bingo book that she knew of, not to mention that nothing around her looked like anything she had ever seen before. She would go so far as to say that even the sky was a different shade of blue than what she was accustomed. All and all it wasn't her homeland.

A brief hand of fear grabbed her, but she pushed it aside as concern took hold of her. There was no visible land, yet she could tell by the homes partially submerged by water that their used to be. Her savior looked about obviously concerned about something when she heard a cry for help. He looked torn, which Sakura didn't understand at all.

"Put me down and go help."

He no longer held her bridal style, but rather held her so that her feet were dangling below her just above the water. It was somewhat awkward being so close to a stranger, but as he had made no ill mannered moves Sakura dealt with it.

"But the water..."

Sakura looked down at the water wondering what was wrong with it and then she remembered she wasn't in her world. Things were bound to be different and if they weren't then she wouldn't have felt so out of place.

He didn't know her just as she didn't know him. She would have to show him a little of what she could do. After all, she knew a little of what he could do.

"Is just water. Besides, you carried me all the way here. I have plenty of energy to do something as simple as walking on water."

Before he could protest any further Sakura nimbly slipped out of his grasp and landed on top of the water. He appeared stunned and Sakura almost chuckled. She could imagine that's how she looked at him when he caught her falling from the sky.

"I'll look for people to the east. You go west."

With that she dashed off searching for survivors of the flood.

Superman didn't have time to dwell on her departure or why she could walk on water. He had people to save. Still, he was a little amazed which was something coming from him.

* * *

Sakura's feet tapped lightly on the water as she moved quickly shouting, asking if anyone could hear her. She sent chakra to her ears to see if she heard any replies and after several minutes she heard one.

"Help! Someone please help."

Sakura increased her speed running towards the voice.

"Keep talking so I can find you."

At Sakura's shout the female in need of help immediately kept calling for help enabling Sakura to reach her faster. What she found, upon her arrival, was a woman with blond hair holding a male child in her arms struggling to stay above the water. The child appeared to be unconscious, but somehow Sakura knew it was a little more than that.

Sakura reached out a hand and pulled the woman and child up out of the water. The woman looked vaguely surprised at her actions, but her main concern was the child that she clutched securely to her bosom. Sakura, without a second thought, picked them both up and headed for high ground so that she could see if there was anything she could do for the child.

"Lay him down."

The woman didn't seem to hear as she only clutched the boy tighter. Sakura, knowing every second was precious, barely restrained herself from yelling at the woman. However, she knew why the woman was behaving the way she was. Friends had died in her arms during the war and holding them kept you from accepting their death readily. So instead, she coaxed the child from her arms, assuring her that if she let her she could help.

Sakura, while accessing her patient, began firing questions at the woman as to what happened. Her voice was shaky as she told her that he had gotten caught on something while the flooding was occurring and couldn't get out. She had dived in several times trying to get him free, but by the time she had he was unconscious.

Sakura set out immediately to remove the water from the boy's lungs.

* * *

Superman, having witnessed her saving the young child's life, realized she was capable of managing the task at hand. Anyone who he found that was injured or needed help he brought to her and she healed them. He couldn't help but realize how well they worked together. They saved many lives.

* * *

After all was said and done the people were safe and they were left to pick up the pieces of their broken lives they finally spoke to each other. Sakura's tongue darted out over her dry, cracked lips. She couldn't recall the last time she had anything to eat or drink, but that was a problem for another time...unless, of course, she passed out. But what were the odds of that happening?

"Where am I?"

It was the first question that came to her mind as well as the most important. He didn't seem to want to reply as he answered her question with a question.

"Are you injured?"

His concern was obvious, and she had dived into a few dangerous situations in order to save a few lives, and that was the reason she didn't become upset at his evasion. However, she did find her heart pounding rapidly as she knew that the answer, when it came, would be something that she was not pleased with.

"I'm fine, but I need to know where I am, so I can figure out how to get home."

She opted to be reasonable and even injected a small note of begging in her voice and pleading in her eyes. His whole demeanor changed at her gesture and he stepped a little closer to her in a manner that was decidedly protective.

"Right this second we're in Bangladesh, however, you were falling from the sky right above Japan."

Sakura wracked her brain recalling the geography of the Five Shinobi Nations. In the Academy she had been good at geography and memorizing things. She had aced the test and was certain that as time passed, she hadn't forgotten anything. And yet still, she knew neither of the places he had mentioned which was worrisome.

"I don't know these places. I have never heard of them."

"Then where are you from?"

His voice was calm, soothing. She thought he was doing it on purpose to keep her from breaking down. She wasn't going to—not yet at least. She'd save that for when she had a moment or two of privacy.

"Konohagakure—The Hidden Leaves Village." Sakura raised her hand and touched her forehead protector—the only proof she really had that she wasn't crazy. "And I have to get back as soon as possible."

He didn't reply immediately. He stared at her, through her, deep in thought it was a while before he finally spoke again.

"Come with me. I think I may know of someone who can help you."

Sakura nodded her head eagerly and allowed him to sweep her off her feet.


	3. TheGirlWhoWasStrongerThanSheLooked

**The Girl Who Was Stronger than she Looked**

She fell asleep in his arms as he flew away with her. Sakura had no idea why she trusted him so much. He had done very little to earn that trust, except catch her as she fell from the sky. Still, that didn't stop her from letting her body shut down as the trauma of the day caught up to her.

She didn't feel his eyes as they rested upon her in her slumber.

Superman, for his part, could admit that he had seen his fair share of odd things in his life. After all, he was an alien from another planet; normal was something that at times he felt was beyond him. Yet he had no idea where she had come from or why she had fallen from the sky. When he caught her he had seen no place that she could have fallen from. A few jokes about angels filtered through his brain, but he doubted she'd find them amusing. Still, she was beautiful enough to be an angel or at the very least otherworldly. Her hair was a soft pink giving her a delicate, almost fragile appearance. Her eyelashes were long and were dusted with silver. Not to mention her eyes grew greener when she was focused on saving lives. She was a tiny little thing. Since he towered over her if he had to guess, he would say she wasn't much taller than five feet.

Superman made a vain attempt to pull his mind off the woman in his arms. Only to find his thoughts drifting to her once more.

He had been amazed when he saw her stand on water as if it were solid ground. That was something that not even he could do. Sure, he could hover above it, but he was certain that she actually _stood _upon the water.

Was she an alien from another planet? Did she get her power from the yellow sun as he did? What was Konohagakure or rather where was it?

From what he saw she had strength that no human that he knew of had. She could, at the very least, lift her own body weight. He had seen her pull the woman in Bangladesh out of the water as if she were light as a feather. She couldn't be just an ordinary human. Was she a meta human?

That still didn't explain why she was falling from the sky in an area where no one else was around to have dropped her. Superman frowned and diverted his attention away from the girl and back to where he was going.

Although those thoughts were significantly worse. Why, of all people, did he think to go to Lois first? Before he knew it, he was lowering them to the ground in Metropolis. They hadn't reached his intended destination as he no longer thought it was the wisest of ideas. Lois had her own lover, her own life and it didn't include him. He couldn't just barge in on her and expect her to help him. Besides, he had a lot of experience with reporters (even if Lois had moved on to television, she was still a reporter and could smell a story a mile away) and knew that this was a story that she wouldn't be able to let go of. He didn't want the young woman to be exploited. In the short amount of time he had spent with her Superman found that he was very protective towards her.

He stood in the streets as the sun began to set in Metropolis with a small bundle in his arms vaguely confused as to what he should do and how he should help her. His initial plan had frayed at the edges and unraveled and he had no back up plan.

It was then that he realized that he didn't even know her name. Her body shifted and she began to stir, moving restlessly in his arms. When her eyes opened, he found that he was staring at her. Her cheeks flushed and she looked away from him and at their surroundings and he knew he had crossed some sort of invisible line. He looked away from her, missing the relief on her face at his action.

"Are we there yet?" Her voice was groggy and she rubbed her eyes sleepily.

Superman chuckled as many a child had asked that question in their youth. He couldn't help but return his gaze to her as the comparison brought a thought to his mind. She looked so very young. So young that he was suddenly uncomfortable with holding her close in his arms.

Sakura, upon realizing that they were on land wiggled out of his grasp until he set her on her feet. "Where are we? Is your friend somewhere around?" She turned her head left to right her lips pursed in confusion as there was no one about. They only stood on a quiet, deserted street.

Superman prepared himself to respond, but then remembered that he didn't know her name. They worked together to save lives and he hadn't even bothered to ask her name-a basic common courtesy. He opened his mouth to correct that error, but before the opportunity had completely arisen she interrupted with a question of her own.

"Is that normal?"

Personally, she didn't think it was, but she had a feeling that wherever she was, it wasn't anything like home so her definition of normal could technically be thrown out the window. It looked like a spider, but it was missing a few legs and a whole lot bigger. It held a cube in what she would guess to be its antennae.

Her lips curled in disgust at the sight. She wasn't a fan of insects, bugs, or anything that crawled, but she typically tolerated them since she considered Shino a friend. However, some things should never be allowed into existence-like human sized bugs.

Superman turned his attention to what had caught her attention and frowned, realizing that what he was looking at was not human.

"Trouble." He murmured before telling her to stay where she was. He didn't listen to her reply, but instead followed said trouble into an old building. The creature was holding a box in its...antenna as it walked about searching quietly for something.

"What are you doing?" Superman asked to draw the attention of the creature who, in turn, hissed at him. It wasn't a pretty hiss. In fact, it made it uglier than it had already been a lot like some people when they cry.

The creature's many legs turned and ran in his direction and it didn't look like it was going to suggest they sit down for a spot of tea and crumpets. Superman raised his fists and waited patiently for the creature to reach him when a blur of pink that he immediately identified as his temporary companion appeared in front of him letting out a war cry of, "_Shannaro!_"

It flew backwards at the blow she delivered, but was up and running again seconds later. A sliver of dread crept up Superman's spine. "_Get_ _out of here!_"

Her head snapped in his direction at his command, and her face twisted in anger as she made a bold proclamation. "I'm not leaving you." He didn't know what to feel about that and didn't have time to analyze his feelings on the matter. Instead, Superman decided then to take a chance.

She had the ability to walk on water. She was able to lift more than her body weight. With her petite frame she was able to knock the creature more than half her size clear across the room. When attacked she didn't show fear, but stood her ground. That either meant she had the strength to back up her play or that she was insane. A part of him thought she was just insane, but the evidence was pointing to the contrary.

He scooped her up in his arms and threw her out the entrance of the building, hoping against hope that she would land safely. It was a good thing he did though, because soon the creature was upon him swinging it's blade-like legs effectively tearing his uniform in a place or two. Before he had the chance to counterattack the box and the creature that held it exploded. The creature let out a loud cry, but Superman seeing what was about to happen, knocked the box out of its grasp and threw his body over the creature subduing the explosion with his body.

That didn't stop the room from erupting into flames due to the_ other_ explosion caused by the box he had carelessly knocked away. Superman stood quickly and accessed the situation.

He needed to put out the fire and quickly. The area was inhabited and people could be harmed if he didn't react quickly enough. There was no sprinkler system as the building was an older one.

His companion chose that moment to run back into the burning building. Superman wondered briefly if she had a habit of running to trouble instead of away from it, and if she did how had she lived as long as she had. He heard her call for him and he moved to get her out once more, but he heard her say, "Water Style: Water Dragon Bullet Technique."

The flames began to die down as they were doused with water from an unknown origin. Smoke filled the area, but he had no trouble making his way to her side. When she finished extinguishing the flames, he couldn't stop the question that came to mind.

"What are you?"

"Don't you mean who?" She smiled cheekily at him, her face dripped with sweat presumably from the heat of the flames. "I'm Sakura, if I didn't mention it before. It's nice to meet you."


	4. The Girl Who Caught on Quickly

**THE GIRL WHO CAUGHT ON QUICKLY**

* * *

"So...what was that about? Was it an enemy of yours?"

Her tone was casual, but she was actually very curious. He didn't seem like a man that anyone would want to make an enemy out of, but stranger things had happened. Not to mention the fact that whatever it was that attacked them didn't look human. As she came closer to it and touched it with her own hands, she was prone to thinking that its appearance in this world was about as odd as hers was. Was it some type of machine? Sakura's brain struggled to process what was happening, but she didn't think she was doing a very good job. Too much had happened to her too swiftly. She needed more time to process the situation, but she had a bad feeling she wasn't going to get it.

He didn't answer her, but rather looked carefully around the room as if he was searching for something. Sakura didn't know what he could look for let alone see, as it was dark in the building with only a little light illuminating the inside of the building due to the earlier explosion so she didn't bother to help him. Instead, Sakura found herself wandering closer to the outside as something out of the corner of her eye caught her attention.

Darkness blanketed the sky without her realizing it and yet not a star was in sight. That was something that was unheard of in Konoha. You could always see the stars and Sakura realized it was something she had taken for granted. Here the sky was like a blank canvas waiting to be painted upon. Sadness filled her momentarily until she focused on the green glow that illuminated the sky. It was by no means a star, but didn't make her any less curious as to why it was moving closer to where she and her super companion were located at a steady speed. Sakura sent a small wave of chakra to her eyes in order to enhance her vision and what she saw astounded her.

Two men encased in green light were flying in the skies.

What was with this world and the ability to fly? Was it some sort of prerequisite? Sakura's eyes narrowed when they landed silently not too far away from where she was. If she hadn't been covertly watching the whole scene she wouldn't have noticed their presence at all. Sakura's eyes narrowed knowing that their appearance was no coincidence.

Sakura raised her head when she felt someone come closer to her and found herself looking at her super friend's visage. She frowned when she realized he looked angry, and she didn't think that anger was directed at her, or rather she hoped it wasn't seeming as though he stood in the fire and came out unscathed. Literally. She couldn't do that. She wasn't even sure she wanted to. Sakura enhanced her hearing catching the end of the conversation between the two men.

"-can handle this."

Before Sakura could question him about what was going on, Superman flew outside becoming a red and blue blur and knocked the man dressed in green backwards.

"I don't handle easily."

Sakura, looking at how hard Superman had hit the guy, had to agree. The kunoichi slipped out of the building sticking to the shadows as attention wasn't on her which suited her just fine.

* * *

Green Lantern's eyes widened as he flew backwards from the unexpected blow. He mused that he probably should have been a bit quieter, but it was too late for that as he already had an infuriated alien on his hands. His back slammed against the side of a car making an indentation of his body in it as well as busting the glass. A few shards sliced his cheek, and he raised a hand to wipe the blood that trickled down his face away.

Lantern picked himself up off the ground cursing silently as Superman packed one hell of a punch. It was amazing that he hadn't broken anything. He supposed this was one of those moments where being a Green Lantern came in handy.

After Green Lantern had shaken himself from his daze, he realized that Batman had managed to get into a bit of trouble trying to hold off Superman until he was ready to get back into the game.

"You can't subdue me Batman. You're just an ordinary human with a few toys. Toys, that you're almost out of."

"I don't need to subdue you. Just keep you distracted for a little while."

Green Lantern took that as his cue to intervene. By will a large dragon appeared and flew through the air rushing in Superman's direction. Lantern saw Superman turn his head his way and narrow his eyes, but he was too late to stop his dragon from swallowing him whole encasing him in his light prison.

"Batman are you alrig-"

Before he could complete his question, his dragon was shattered to pieces and Superman stood in the aftermath looking...angrier than he had at first. Green Lantern didn't suppose that was a good sign, but he wasn't about to give up yet.

"Cute." Superman muttered before rushing him.

Green Lantern mused that perhaps it was time to phone a friend.

* * *

The battle between the three men was intense, although it appeared to Sakura that the one in black didn't want to fight at all. She debated for a while whether or not to enter the fray that was rapidly getting out of hand. Buildings were being destroyed and Sakura could see people running for cover and decided that she would have to intervene for the sake of the people who were getting caught in the crossfire of some male testosterone bull shit. She was reminded of Sasuke and Naruto and wondered when she got home if she was going to have to put up with that type of thing for the rest of her life.

The future suddenly looked bleak.

A red blur joined the fray, moving as fast as lightening against her savior. He taunted the Superman saying that he wouldn't be able to hit him, but Superman proved him wrong with a flick of his finger, very little effort, and a smug smile. Sakura bit back a snicker and decided then enough was enough.

Just as Superman and the Green one were about to come to blows Sakura threw herself between the two not realizing that she wasn't the only one who had such an idea. The dark one stood in front of her holding his arms out to the two men. He looked over his shoulder at her, obviously wondering where she had come from and what she was doing. However, she had better things to do than to answer his unspoken questions.

"Stop this," Sakura said her attention focused wholly on the man she had met earlier that day, the man she had saved lives with. The Superman. "I've only known you for a short period of time, but this mindless destruction, can you tell me that this is you? People are running for their lives afraid because of you. I thought you saved people not made them fear you. Did you lie to me? Is this who you truly are?"

Superman looked down at Sakura and slowly his stance relaxed and a contrite look crossed his face.

"She's right Superman. Green Lantern and I didn't come here to fight." Sakura was beginning to wonder about the odd names and slowly began to assume they were code names unless someone's mother was a little too creative when passing out baby names. "We were attacked just like you were. Green Lantern says they were aliens just like you. We were hoping that you knew something about them."

"You're an alien?" Sakura asked, looking at Superman in a new light. She never believed in such things. They were things you found in books and on television. Not in real life. He had to have it wrong. But then again, he could fly, was obviously strong, could withstand fire, and was able to take on three men at one time. That didn't mean anything though. She was strong and if her chakra wasn't halfway depleted from all the healing she had done earlier then she'd be able to take on three men at once as well. At that thought Sakura's hand drifted down to the pouch she kept on her hip to make sure it was still there. She had a feeling she'd need a few of the solider pills she kept inside of it.

"Who's the girl?" The dark stranger asked.

"Who are_ you_?" Sakura countered before Superman could reveal her name.

The Red Blur came through and asked if they were still fighting. Once he determined they weren't he began to evacuate the area. Sakura thought it was funny in a 'not really' sort of way that they began evacuating the people _after_ they finished the mindless destruction.

"Well?"

Sakura watched as his lips twitched slightly. "I'm Batman, this is Green Lantern, the guy in the red is the Flash. And you?"

"Kunoichi."

* * *

Sakura felt Superman's eyes on her, but she didn't return his stare. She didn't know these people and now she felt like perhaps she trusted Superman a little too quickly by giving her name even if it wasn't her full one. She wasn't about to make that mistake again. She just hoped her instincts about the man was correct and he didn't reveal the little that he knew about her.

"You're a ninja?"

Sakura nodded, wondering how Batman knew that so quickly as it looked like the Green Lantern and Superman were still puzzled. She didn't ask, though, because she somehow felt that doing so would give him the upper hand.

"Can we get back to the subject at hand?"

Sakura glanced at the Green Lantern after he posed his question, and then at Superman and still felt a bit of tangible hostility between the two. She hoped another fight didn't break out. Truthfully, all she really wanted to do was go home, but she couldn't exactly leave, especially since Superman was the only one she trusted enough to help her get there.

"I haven't seen any creatures like that before today, but the one I did see had one of those things you have in your hand, Batman. I think it blew up when he did."

Sakura glanced at the item in Batman's hand and vaguely recalled seeing it before Superman threw her out of the building. She still couldn't believe he had done that. She had been protected from danger before, but to be forcibly tossed out of it...well, she didn't know whether or not to be irritated or amused at his audacity. In the end, as Sakura wandered back to the area where she and Superman fought the creature to make sure the box was well and truly gone, she decided that she'd be amused.

As Sakura scanned the dark building she decided it wouldn't hurt to double check and make sure that the cube was gone. She hated to be unprepared for the unexpected.


	5. The Girl Who Had the Gift of Persuasion

**THE GIRL WHO HAD THE GIFT OF PERSUASION**

* * *

Sakura walked into the dark building remembering that she couldn't see a thing. With an irritated sigh Sakura rolled her eyes at herself. She turned her head and peered outside to see if anyone was nearby. There were no able bodies in her field of view so she raised her voice, hoping someone would hear her.

"Anyone have a light?"

After calling out, she immediately turned her attention back to the room trying to remember where she exchanged blows with the creature hoping to find some remnants of it that would give some sort of clue as to what was going on. When a large light flooded through the area Sakura's eyes grew large. She hadn't expected that much support. In truth, she hadn't expected any sort of response at all since they all seemed to be so absorbed in each other. She turned her head and looked behind her to see who had lent a helping hand only to realize that she couldn't see anything. Turning and facing the light was blinding. A loud, unfamiliar sound, filled her ears like someone was trying to beat the air into submission caused Sakura to raise a hand and touch her aching ears briefly.

"What's going on?"

When she received no response she found herself running outside to see what the commotion was about. She opened her mouth to call out to Superman, but she felt herself being grabbed and pulled along. She squinted her eyes and noted that it wasn't Superman's arms that held her, the man was smaller and leaner than Superman was, so she began to fight to be free, earning a few ouches and groans. When no sort of retaliation came at her blows Sakura decided it would probably be smart to see who it was that grabbed her.

It was the Green Lantern that held her closely and while it felt really nice in his arms, she wasn't that type of girl so she began her struggles anew. He didn't hit her, instead, he tightened his grip, making it difficult for her to breathe.

"Stop, we have to get out of here."

"We can do that with your hands off me."

"Yeah, but then they'll see you." Sakura frowned, wondering who 'they' were and why he was shielding her from view. Was he...protecting her? Sakura shook her head, knowing that couldn't be possible. He didn't know her at all so why would he go through such lengths?

"They've seen us. We need to leave _now._"

The Batman's statement made her uneasy. Sakura pulled away from Green Lantern who let her go after she stepped on his toe and moved over to the Batman and Superman who weren't standing that far apart.

"Who are we running from?"

"Them." Batman pointed to the sky to see something _else _flying in the sky. Sakura pursed her lips. That really didn't tell her 'who' they were running from so she naturally assumed it was trouble.

"Of course." Sakura muttered and shook her head. "What do we need to get away?"

"A distraction and a route."

Sakura glanced to her left, then her right, frowned, then said, "I'll take care of it. Gather the others and get ready to run."

"What are you going to do?"

Superman's question sounded vaguely suspicious. She could understand that. The whole situation was suspicious to her, but she was going to go with it because she wasn't about to be detained for no reason, because the only reason they would need to run was if capture was imminent.

"I'm going to provide a distraction."

:::

It was obvious upon first meeting her that she was with Superman. Even when she threw herself between them it was obvious that if it ever came down to picking sides she'd pick Superman's every time. Still, Hal Jordan, the Green Lantern couldn't help but be curious about her. She called herself Kunoichi, but he had heard of no such person. Batman had said she was a ninja yet as far as he knew ninja were assassins for hire, and yet when he looked at her petite frame and large green eyes he didn't think 'killer', but maybe that was the point.

He found himself amazed at how quickly she single-handedly diffused all the tension in Superman with just a few words. Were they a couple? For some reason he didn't think so. Superman held himself aloof like he was alone in the whole world. There was an impenetrable aura surrounding him that made you wary of trying to cross him. Even standing next to him seemed taboo. They weren't a couple.

Hal smiled. That meant she was fair game.

"Don't even think about it."

Green Lantern turned his head and looked at the Flash innocently.

"Think about what?"

"She's too young. She shouldn't even be out here with us."

"She's a grown woman Flash. No girl has a body like that. Not to mention no girl carries herself the way she does."

Flash shook his head slowly at Green Lantern's reply, knowing full well girls matured a lot faster nowadays. Hal spent entirely too much time on other planets. It was a situation that could only end badly. It didn't take a high IQ to figure that one out. Still, he had to say something to him."You're asking for trouble."

Green Lantern turned and looked at Sakura whose fingers moved rapidly for some reason he couldn't phantom and said, "I certainly am."

A few moments after Sakura's fingers stopped moving the helicopters that were moving in on them suddenly changed direction. Green Lantern's eyes grew large in surprise knowing then that Kunoichi couldn't just be some killer for hire. Or was it a coincidence that the helicopters changed direction?

"_What did she do?"_

Batman, who was suddenly behind him, answered, causing Hal to whirl around to face him. He was a little creepy, this Batman, and the honest truth was he wanted to leave him behind as soon as possible.

"She provided a distraction."

"But how? What did she do?"

"Doesn't matter. What's important is that we get out of here. Now."

:::

Sakura looked at Superman who was paying more attention to what Batman was saying than what she was doing. Sakura had half a mind to listen in on what he found so curious, but she couldn't afford to waste chakra as she was getting tired.

"Superman, I need you to break the ground so that we can escape that way."

"We don't need to go with them. I'm not like them and neither are you. Come with me and I'll help you find a way home."

His offer was tempting. She had no idea what was going on in this world and she figured being a part of it would be messy. Yet if what she was gathering from the others was true, then things were going to get worse. Someone was placing explosives throughout the cities without a care as to what happened to those who got caught in the crossfire. How could she not help if they were trying to save lives? She was a medic after all, and she wouldn't be able to live with herself if she didn't do what she could to help until she was able to make it home.

Besides, if she left Naruto would be disappointed in her.

"No, I'm not like them. You're right. Just like neither are you, but just because that's true, doesn't mean we should turn our back on doing what's right. I want to help them. I want to work by their sides and save lives just like we did earlier today." Sakura extended her hand. "So are you with me?"

"With _us."_ Batman interjected and Sakura glanced around at their motley group and smiled.

"That's right. _With us_."

A smile graced Superman's lips and he shook his head slightly and took Sakura's offered hand briefly giving it a small squeeze before letting go.


End file.
